A story of three
by Andrea Ye
Summary: A short story about how things may play after the last book. The story will keep in mind on what happened previously and the prophecy will not be altered. It will also deal on how innovation and rushed decisions will undermine the hard fought peace, and show that Alagaesia is indeed a mortal realm.
1. Chapter 1

"Arya we are about to arrive" said the green dragon to its rider.

Taken out of her stupor Arya collected herself and answered her companion "Thanks Firnen"

Arya raised her hand to make some shade over her eyes and squinted them. On the edge of the horizon she saw their destination. A small island made of a vast forest on the west, a short chain of mountains on the north, and a plain on the south and east.

Taking the scenery for a while longer she tipped Firnen to dive and go back to the ships that were directing toward the island. A team of three dragon riders was tasked to escort the elven emissary. As Arya closed in to the largest ship jumped off of from the saddle and landed on the deck without much effort. Turning her eyes high on the sky she linked with Firnen and saluted him.

An elf with black hair walked towards her, stopped and saluted his leader. Arya returned the salute.

"Was the flight pleasant? My queen" asked Vanir with deference.

"Yes, it was." Answered Arya and quickly added, "We are close, we should be in Creetia shortly"

Vanir bent and said, "I will relay the message to the captain and we shall start the preparation for disembark". He then turned and walked away.

Arya walked in her chamber that was allocated to her and started to change into her formal dress. The dress was heavy and constricting. Arya did not like the dress; she very much preferred her leather pants, boots and the familiar weight of her sword on the side. But this time she chose to wear the dress, in the end appearances is important. She is the queen of the elves, the alpha-kin. She made her choice. A choice that she keeps contemplating everyday.

A moment later a light knocking came from the door. While moving her inexperienced hands on the dress she asked with firm voice:

"Who is it?"

"It is Ismira, queen Arya" answered a strong voice.

"Please, come in" answered Arya after twisting her middle and index finger. A light click was heard, the door opened and a woman walked in.

The person was a human female with long brown hair; she was taller than Arya of a good pair of inches, smooth skin like porcelain and big gray eyes. Her appearance was that of a woman in her mid twenties, which was not her age. She was dressed in a dark red armor that covered every inch of her body, except her head since the helmet was tucked between her left arm and her hip.

The female put two fingers on her lips and with a smile saluted Arya, which she returned with a smile of her own. Arya liked the rider. She was very direct in her dealings, like her father, which was a good change of pace from the subtleties of the elves. After her time as an ambassador of the elves during the war against Galbatorix, she didn't feel completely comfortable with her people. "Arya, you seem eager to arrive" said Ismira

"Is it so obvious?" asked Arya while trying to better fix her dress, which was starting to prove her patience. Ismira smiled at the queen's work and reached out to help her.

"You have kept smiling the whole travel" said Ismira.

Looking outside the small window Arya answered, "I guess I was, it is just nice to get out once in a while"

"You should allow some time for yourself, more often Arya"

"You are starting to sound like Vanir, Ismira" said Arya with a small tone of annoyance in her words

"Because he's right… sometimes" answered Ismira with another smile. She then asked Arya to turn and gave her work a last inspection.

Nodding she said "Done"

"Thank you, It has been a long time since I wore one of these" said Arya while looking herself in the mirror and smiling at the job well done.

"So, we didn't have time to catch up before. How have you been this last five years Arya, are the elder still giving you a hard time?"

"Didn't I wrote you just two months ago?" answered Arya, while taking a seat and inviting Ismira to do the same.

"Yes, but I believe that you would feel better if you talked about it rather then just putting ink on paper" said Ismira while accepting Arya's offer.

This time Arya laughed. Yes she liked the rider, she understood her better then most, sometimes even better then herself.

"Yes, the elders are still… how should I put gently, oh yeah. They are still pissed off that I was expelled from the order"

"What about you? What do you think of it?" asked Ismira.

Arya looked down on her left hand and started to rub the ring on her index finger with her thumb. The ring had a rectangular sapphire and in it an image of a flower was trapped inside the gemstone.

"_Arya, have you made your decision?" asked Eragon, Grand Master of the dragon riders' order. His voice was gentle and his eyes never left the figure in front of him that had her eyes down. He was in the meeting hall, but it was deep in the night and no one except him was in the room. The only sound breaking the silence of the night was the fire crackling at the center of the hall. Eragon was close to the fire, feeling unexpectedly colder than usual. Silence followed in the royal council room. After moments that felt like years Arya looked into the mirror at Eragon's face and saw him gaze deep into her eyes. She walked towards the mirror, closed her eyes and slowly put a hand on the surface of the mirror and repeated what she said thirty-five years before with weak voice "I… cannot"._

_A smile that did not reach Eragon's eyes marred his face and lifted his hand like to touch hers._

"_Then the path is cleared… Arya" answered Eragon after a moment of hesitation._

_Arya opened her eyes. She was still in the royal council room, but it was late into the day and the room was filled with the elven elders from the governing families. The elders were quiet and no detail in their actions betrayed their masterfully crafted mask of impassiveness. They were not happy. In the mirror, Eragon was suited with his complete armor, his hair was freshly cut and his chin clean shaven. She thought that he was indeed very handsome. His chocolate eyes were on her but unlike the previous night he wasn't looking at her, his gaze was absent. His voice was strong, and firm but distant._

"… _from this moment forth, Arya Drottning Shadeslayer you have been striped of your duty of dragon rider. Firnen will stay with you... " At this sentence most of the elders nodded their heads._

_Eragon continued "… since it is not up to the order whom the dragon chooses as his or her rider. You may retain your armor and blade. But you will not be able to freely move among the nations of Alagesia without the consent of the nations that you are going to visit. This includes Theana and Creetia…" at this point Arya griped her hands but quickly settled down her uneasiness. "You will have no judicial power in other nations and you will have no position in the Varden. Do you accept these limitations?" Eragon focused, and as coming back from a trance he saw her._

"_I do" answered Arya, queen of the elves._

**I hope you enjoyed this first part, I am currently writing this story in order to try to give an happy ending to a series that I liked for a long time. This story came to me after I gave some though on how things may play after the last book.**_  
_

**As always please let me know what you think about it, even if it is criticism, they might be helpful for future chapters :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for your review. I would like to thank especially Silverwing. Yes, English is not my first language, not even my second one unluckily. I will keep in mind your suggestions. I especially liked how you rephrased the part where Arya covers her eyes. I am sorry for writing modernly, but that is the only place where I cannot change since one of the reason I am doing this is to improve my English. When I had Arya "saluting" Firnen I was trying to show their friendship but I think that I was too hasty.**

**As for Arya being expelled from the order, I believe that it is a very likely possibility. Arya's duties do get in the way of each other. She cannot hold both positions since they have different goals.**

**BBBBBBBB = Ancient language**

_BBBBBBBB = Past_

_*********** = Beginning and end of a past or future segment_

"Arya" Ismira gently griped her friend's hand with her ungloved one since she turned silent all of sudden.

"He had no other choice" answered Arya, to Ismira's previous question.

"It was bound to happen sooner or later. I was more surprised that it took thirty-five years for it to happen. Eragon was right; a dragon rider should be independent. I knew why but I never really understood the reason" continued Arya, who now looked her friend in the eyes "I believed that I could handle both duties. But I was wrong, and it showed soon after he left. The elves sought my position as a chance to influence the other races' political view to be more akin to the elven one. The other races did not like that another rider hold a throne, an elfish one nonetheless" at this point her eyes grew distant "I tried my best to not been caught up in the game, but as a Queen it was my duty to see to my people first, mean while as a rider I had to act in the best interest of all the races."

Arya's smile turned colder recalling the past. After Eragon's departure she started to carry the two eggs that he left to her to the Urgals and Dwarves. It didn't take long for the eggs to hatch but during her travels she noticed that people's eyes were full of suspicion when they were directed towards her. During the general councils that took part every four years, it was not uncommon for dwarves and humans to imply that she was siding with the elves in every matter, from the borders to the treatment of criminals. That she was not properly being objective in the dealings among the races. Her words were distorted by distrust, the other races believed that everything she was doing was in order to increase the elven power or increase their standing. The Urgals never said it for respect of Eragon but she was sure that if she asked, they too would say the same things. Maybe with the difference of being articulated more directly.

Time passed, more eggs came until all twenty-six hatched but the suspicion and distrust stayed there. The effects of her position were becoming a weak spot in the new dragon rider's order. Every time she was used to scorn either the elves or, by extension, the dragon rider's order even though no one made such remarks openly. The elves elders were not much help either. They viewed the humans as children that cannot make rational decision, they viewed them as the source of the problems that afflicted Alagaesia, and that their way of doing was the best resulting in not giving much space for middle ground when the cases pertained about international relations. Rumors started to mount that the order was seeking to not to become an impartial overseer but to dominate the races. Of course such words when spoken were met with scorn by those that saw the battles against the black king, the fights of the then young free rider who against all odds was able to put an end to an era of darkness where nobles forsake their duty in exchange for more wealth, the ever present oppression that imperial soldier would wrong them and have no means to resist them, and to live in fear every day that it may be their last. But human life is short and their memory brief. In less then half a century most of the humans that first handily saw the horrors of that time are no more and, with them, their voice becoming ever so feeble and their warning weakening with each passing year.

All this was normal, Arya knew that it was one way which human society healed itself. They always had.

"You should have accepted his offer and gone with him" said Ismira bluntly.

"I didn't know that he decided to leave Alagaesia and I just became Drottning" answered Arya, while releasing her hand and sitting straight back on the exquisite wooden chair.

"I had a duty to my people. What was I supposed to do? Should I have just up and left and said 'Sorry, I changed my mind. I want to go because I want to have a chance with Eragon whom at this time, I am still not sure if it will work out.'" Arya bursted out with irritation.

"Yes, that didn't sound too bad" said Ismira visibly liking the thought "but, if I may, I would have added 'and you are too stuck up and I am drowning here'"

"Ohh. Ismira, only you would think that that would be a good idea" answered Arya while rolling her eyes.

"Joke aside, I do believe that you should have gone with him"

"I know, and that doesn't make it a better idea"

"What is so difficult to say that you want to go with him. That you want to be with him. You are a dragon rider and you know now the reason why a dragon rider cannot be tied down. If you leave your position as Queen you will get into the order again"

"It is not so easy, Ismira" answered Arya covering her eyes with her hand

"You are the one making it difficult Arya. Think about it, you will finally be able to see him, you will get together, have a couple of kids and you will laugh about how baseless your worries were a century from now"

Arya was about to answer again to her friend but was interrupted by a knocking at the door.

"**Who is it?**" asked Arya.

"**It is I, Vanir. Drottning. I wanted notify you that we are about to land on the port of Creetia**" answered Vanir in respectful voice.

"**Thank you, ambassador Vanir**"

With that Vanir left.

"Well, I should get back on the sky with Thalos. Arya, think about what I said you know that I am right"

"I will, Ismira for the thousand time. Sometimes I wonder who is older between us"

Ismira gave Arya a warm smile, which she answered with one of her own. She pulled her close to an embrace.

"**Arya, you can be happy. You just need to extend your arm and grasp it**" whispered Ismira into Arya's hear

"**Thank you, Ismira**" yeah she liked Ismira.

On the dock Arya saw the port getting closer and started to think about what Ismira said. She let her imagination go for a while. Meeting him face to face, talk to him directly with no barriers and embrace him while he gently strokes her hair gently. She would be free to love him with no reserve. She had some reservation before Eragon left. She though that it was still too soon. That he would have a change of heart. He did not, or at least she hoped so. After he asked her to reconsider about her choice she though that he would have gave up on her but he still met her privately with the mirror at any chance they had. They talked about how they were doing, some problems that they encountered and the way their students were doing but she felt that something was different. She did not know what but it kept bugging her to no end.

She pushed these thoughts and concentrated on today. After more then fifty years he would for the first time be in Creetia, she will meet him again face to face. She will meet him in flesh and bone and this what occupied her mind the whole journey. She griped on the side of the ship and smile feeling the trepidation of the reunion that she wished for so long.


End file.
